Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s campaign denied Monday that extremist elements of the GOP have driven away Hispanics and said the only reason he was trailing in that segment was due to a “communication” problem.

The latest polls show a towering lead for President Barack Obama among Hispanic voters, with 70 percent of voter preference compared with 25 percent for Romney.

The difference shows that Hispanic voters “are not well informed” and are responding to a “very effective” ad campaign that has distorted the image of the Republican hopeful, former ambassador Otto Reich, spokesman for the Romney campaign in Latin America, told Efe here on Monday.

“We’re not communicating (with those voters) as we should,” he said.

The man who served as the State Department’s top official for Latin America under President George W. Bush said that Democrats have managed to attract supporters by offering them “social programs.”

“Second- and third-generation Hispanics are more Republican,” Reich said, who denied that his party has anything against immigrants.

“I’m an immigrant and I feel very comfortable being a Republican,” said the Cuban-born former diplomat, who criticized Obama for not fulfilling his promise to pass comprehensive immigration reform during his first year in the White House.